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I'll see your rolly eyes and raise you this...if you don't adjust for the value of a dollar then using your logic/accounting you could also argue that the Iraq war has cost more money than the US Civil War, Naploleon's conquest of Europe, Alexander's conquest of everything, and Genghis Khan's romp (or "Jenjus" as John F. Kerry like to pronounce it) all combined. But that would be, well, crazy, wouldn't it?

If the dollars are adjusted then you painfully mispoke by claiming that cost of 50 yrs. of foreign aid pales to the cost of Iraq. Heck, even not adjusting the dollars and using your own math, the aid works out to half the costs of Iraq. Not too pale in my book.

Did you have any money invested with any of those mentioned above? I would be glad to discuss the strategic importance of Iraq and as I said for my money. I had no stake or stock in the others, they did not affect my financial situation in the least, therefore they are of no importance to me. The inference to Kool Aid is interesting but irrelevant.

"The longer you let a dog go in the wrong direction the more they think they are going in the right direction" Don Remien.

I had no stake or stock in the others, they did not affect my financial situation in the least, therefore they are of no importance to me.

Unfortunately, even those who had no direct investments in Lehman Bros or Goldman, may have been impacted by the "fall-out" that impacted institutional investments, like pension funds. And then there was our local school district that was playing in derivatives! Cost the taxpayers $57 million!

G.Clinchy@gmail.com"Know in your heart that all things are possible. We couldn't conceive of a miracle if none ever happened." -Libby Fudim

​I don't use the PM feature, so just email me direct at the address shown above.

Did you have any money invested with any of those mentioned above? I would be glad to discuss the strategic importance of Iraq and as I said for my money. I had no stake or stock in the others, they did not affect my financial situation in the least, therefore they are of no importance to me. The inference to Kool Aid is interesting but irrelevant.

No Dave, the term was used after Jim Jones convinced his wack job followers hiding out in Gahna to drink poison poured in Kool Aid. I doubt that there was much euphoria involved. In any event those that blindly follow anybody or anything are bound to be dissappointed.

"The longer you let a dog go in the wrong direction the more they think they are going in the right direction" Don Remien.

No Dave, the term was used after Jim Jones convinced his wack job followers hiding out in Gahna to drink poison poured in Kool Aid. I doubt that there was much euphoria involved. In any event those that blindly follow anybody or anything are bound to be dissappointed.

I certainly agree with your last comment, and I'll even give you the first part about KoolAid. Don't care for it myself anyway, I'm more of a beer guy.

Unfortunately, even those who had no direct investments in Lehman Bros or Goldman, may have been impacted by the "fall-out" that impacted institutional investments, like pension funds. And then there was our local school district that was playing in derivatives! Cost the taxpayers $57 million!

And while we're on this topic and the liberals are pointing fingers at Madoff and Lehman Bros. and Enron let us not forget the swindling of the public by our very own government officials. Add it all up and it probably eclipses spending on the Iraq war.

Just go back and peruse the hit parade thread, this cunning D.C. employee alone swindled nearly $50 MILLION dollars, little of which will ever be recovered. She's been rewarded for her ingenuity with 3 squares and a cot for 17 years. At a cost of $150 a day (just heard that on the radio as an estimate of what a minimum security stay at the Crossbars Motel cost) that's another million she'll cost us unless she gets time off for good behavior.

No Dave, the term was used after Jim Jones convinced his wack job followers hiding out in Gahna to drink poison poured in Kool Aid. I doubt that there was much euphoria involved. In any event those that blindly follow anybody or anything are bound to be dissappointed.

Actually, I'm of an age where the first reference I remember to drinking Kool-Aid was to Ken Kesey's magic bus tours around the country handing out acid (LSD) spiked Kool-Aid. This was immortalized in Tom Wolfe's book, The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test published in 1968. Drinking the Kool-Aid was definitely associated with some euphoric feelings and retained its meaning then of blindly doing something that might or might not be too smart. It was an expression that we used when I was in college (late sixties) and predated Jonestown by many years despite current discussions and Wikipedia tying it directly to Jonestown.